Georgia voters on Tuesday rejected incumbent mayors in Savannah, Albany and three Atlanta suburbs in runoff elections.
Valdosta’s mayoral race remained too close to call, while former Sylvester Mayor Bill Yearta defeated fellow Republican and former Leesburg Mayor Jim Quinn in a special election for a state House seat in southwest Georgia.
In Savannah, longtime Alderman Van Johnson easily defeated one-term Mayor Eddie DeLoach, winning about 62% of the vote. In Albany, lawyer Kermit “Bo” Dorough appeared to have denied a third term to incumbent Mayor Dorothy Hubbard by a margin of about 300 votes.
Johnson said his victory meant voters rejected negative campaigning and weren’t swayed by DeLoach’s fundraising lead.
“Negative campaigning does not work — people don’t like that kind of stuff,” Johnson told the Savannah Morning News. “Because at the end of the day we all have to live here as neighbors.”
DeLoach said he’s offered his support to Johnson. “We’ll move forward and we’ll have a great city,” he said during his concession speech.
Although no parties are listed on city ballots in Georgia, Johnson identified as a Democrat and was endorsed in his campaign by former Georgia Democratic gubernatorial nominee Stacey Abrams and Democratic presidential candidate Corey Booker of New Jersey. DeLoach is a Republican who had been a conservative voice on the Chatham County Commission before becoming mayor.
Dorough said he wasn’t surprised by his victory, considering Hubbard won only 30% of the votes in the first round of balloting in November.
“That means 70% of the people are not satisfied with the direction of the city,” he told WALB-TV. “I didn’t really see it as a big upset.”
Dorough said he wants to cut city spending, in part by focusing on solar power to supply the city-owned electric system, and by renegotiating the city’s health insurance plan. Dorough, a former Albany city commissioner who ran unsuccessfully for mayor in 2007, has also said he favors closer cooperation with Dougherty County, including possible city-county consolidation.
Valdosta’s runoff for an open seat remains undecided. Talk show host Scott James Matheson narrowly led former fire chief J.D. Rice by 123 votes in final election-day results. However, the Valdosta Daily Times reports 130 provisional ballots and three mail-in ballots remain to be counted. Those ballots are scheduled to be opened on Friday.
In suburban Atlanta, challenger Bianca Motley Broom handily beat longtime incumbent Jack Longino in College Park, while challenger Joseph Geierman cruised to victory over incumbent Donna Pittman in Doraville. Challenger John Lampl beat incumbent Jeff DeTar in Morrow.
Yearta claimed a House District 152 seat that opened when Rep. Ed Rynders, also a Republican, resigned. Yearta will fill the remainder of Rynders’ term in a district that includes Lee and Worth counties and part of Sumter County, and then face re-election in 2020.
